Bananas Foster

Summary: Created in 1951 at the legendary Brennan’s restaurant in New Orleans to honor Richard Foster, a friend of the restaurant and local businessman, this boozy, buttery concoction of caramelized bananas flambéed in rum sauce has since become a dining-out classic.

Ingredients

1½ cups light brown sugar

8 tbsp. unsalted butter

½ tsp. kosher salt

1 stick cinnamon, broken in half

6 underripe bananas, halved lengthwise, and then halved crosswise

¾ cup dark rum

Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Instructions

Heat sugar, butter, salt, and cinnamon in a 12″ skillet over medium-low heat, and cook, stirring, until sugar dissolves in butter. Add bananas, and cook, stirring gently, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add rum, and using a match or lighter, ignite to flambé, and cook until flame dies out. To serve, spoon bananas and sauce over scoops of ice cream in bowls.